The present invention relates generally to the field of dispensing dry ingredients, typically ingredients used for baking.
In order to prepare baked goods, such as breads, cakes, pie crusts, cookies, etc., it is necessary to mix together different amounts of different dry ingredients. Dry ingredients include those commonly understood as such, such as flour, meal, flakes, salt, sugar, powders, nuts, chocolate chip morsels, coffee beans (whole or ground), etc. For instance, it may be necessary to mix five cups of flour, with one-half of a cup of sugar, one tablespoon of salt, one cup of chocolate chip morsels and a teaspoon of baking soda. (Dry ingredients in metric measured recipes are typically measured in weights, e.g. grams. The volume measurement for metric recipes is milliliters.)
In the ordinary situation, each of the different dry ingredients are kept in their own, separate container. The baker must collect each of the containers, measure out the desired amount of the selected ingredients using different measuring containers, (or cleaning a single measuring container between measurements) and deposit the measured volume into a common mixing bowl. The ingredients are subsequently mixed by hand or by power.
During the course of conventional mixing operations, as described above, the baker may spill some of the contents of one or the other of the containers as the desired amount is transferred into the measuring container and then into the mixing container. It is also common to drop the storage container, thereby spilling its contents. Other common difficulties in conventional mixing relate to measuring mistakes, such as confusing a tablespoon for a teaspoon, a volumetric ounce for a weight referenced ounce, forgetting an ingredient or including the desired volume of an ingredient twice. It is also common to mistakenly use baking soda for baking powder, and to confuse other pairs of dry ingredients.
Another difficulty in connection with the use of dry ingredients is that they must be kept in moisture proof containers which are also impervious to invasion by bugs, rodents and other pests. Thus, the containers must be securely fastened shut. Further, some of the containers must be rather large, for the maintenance of ingredients like flour and sugar for which large volumes are customarily used. This large volume, coupled with the need for secure closure often results in spilling problems, difficulties in removing and replacing the container from its storage location etc. Further, it often happens that a container will contain less than the required amount of the dry ingredient, which shortage will have been missed by the baker, thus necessitating an interruption or perhaps cancellation of the baking preparations.
These difficulties arise principally in home or personal baking situations, where the baker may have a minimal experience with baking. However, they also arise in professional baking situations, as well as in experienced non-professional situations, due to haste, interruption, overwork, etc.
Thus, there is need for an apparatus to ease the burdens of measuring, dispensing and mixing dry ingredients. Thus, it is an object of the invention to avoid the potential for spillage and clean-up during the process of measuring out/dispensing dry ingredients. Another object of the invention is to facilitate precise and neat measuring of dry ingredients, minimizing the risk of measurement errors. It is also an object to enable a user to specify a general recipe for a selected baked good, for instance a chocolate chip cookie mix, and to have an apparatus automatically measure and assemble the dry ingredients together. Another object is to enable the user to specify individual ingredients, either by weight, or volume, or a combination of both, and to have the ingredients measured out without need for using a measuring volume device, such as a cup or a spoon. Yet another object of the invention is to provide an automatic measuring device having a resolution on the order of one teaspoon per cup (about 2%) and on the order of 7% for smaller measures, such as a teaspoon. Another object of the invention is to monitor the use of ingredient so that a warning can be issued when the remaining amount of ingredient becomes lower than desired.